Melee Stunts (Action)

Heroic Action Role-Play

Main article: Action

Bait

Basic Action

You present an attractive target for a split second, causing your opponent to take a wild swing or otherwise expose or make a fool of himself.

Make a Melee vs. Dodge roll against your target. If you succeed, you gain a +3 bonus to a later roll against the same opponent. Think of this as a bonus token, that you can spend at an appropriate time to improve a stunt or attack against this target. It is ok to ask if the +3 bonus would make a difference before using it. You will often use this to accumulate successes, repeating the same stunt several times, the bonus from the last attempt giving you a better chance of scoring a setback each time you try. Other uses include setting up an opponent for a friend (giving the bonus away) or to exploit a weakness, setting yourself up to do a task you could not normally accomplish.

It you score an Outcome matching the target's Reflexes, you also inflict a Setback; the target suffers some direct penalty, as appropriate to the situation and how you described your outmaneuver. He might strike past you at a friendly target, run out of ammunition, lose his weapon, or otherwise temporarily make a fool of himself.

Charge

Basic Action

You run a distance up to your Move in a straight line and make a Normal Melee Attack. This is in addition to the normal movement for a basic action.

Disarm

Basic Action

You can disarm opponents causing them to drop their weapons. Make an opposed Melee roll (yes, even shootists can be disarmed this way). If you succeed, the opponent loses the grip on his weapon. He can immediately spend three shots retrieving it. If he chooses not to, he loses the weapon and you can either kick it away or pick it up. If your Outcome matches his Reflexes, he loses both the weapon and the shots.

Feint

Basic Action

You baffle others with false maneuvers. Make a Melee vs. Dodge roll; on a success, your target loses 3 shots and you can move past a position they covered or otherwise get a small respite in a fight - he cannot take Trigger Actions to hinder your movement. If your Outcome matches the target's Reflexes, you cause him major consternation; he loses six shots any anyone can move by him until his next shot comes up.

Find Weakness

Limit Break

Make a Melee attack against which the target cannot use Resist powers; targets do not get to add their Mind to their Action to soak damage from this attack.

Grab

Basic Action

Make a Normal Melee Attack with a damage of Body +0 soaked by Body. If you cause any damage, you do not inflict a Hit but instead grab hold of your opponent and move close, body-to-body. If you score a damage outcome matching the targets's Reflexes you also score an Advantage but still do no actual damage.

You are clinching that opponent until one of the following happens:

• He succeeds at an attack or stunt directed at you.
• You are no longer adjacent.
• You suffer a Setback—this is in addition to the effect of the setback itself.
• You can voluntary end the grab at any time.

While in a grab, you get a +3 bonus to Dodge and Impress as a defense against attacks and stunts from the opponent you are clinching and neither of you can employ weapons, including implements. Both you and your target are restricted to only attacking each other. If your Body scores are within 1 point of each other, you cannot move with a Basic Action, but can move both of you your Move as a basic action. If either of you have 2 or more Body higher than your opponent, the stronger one can move normally, carrying the weaker one around.

Normal Melee Attack

Basic Action

You make an attack roll against your target's Dodge and inflicting damage equal to your Body plus relevant modifiers for the weapon used. A basic unarmed attack like a fist or kick does Body Blunt damage and has the Stun ability, while a dedicated natural attack like claws or jaws does Body +1 Cutting damage. Weapons, powers, and schticks can greatly enhance these values.

Strength Push

Trigger Action

The Body and Mass table shows what kinds of loads can be lifted depending on Body. Handling such loads does not require an action or roll. Handling greater loads is done with a Trigger Action triggered by whatever event required greater strength. Make a Melee roll against your Body; for every 3 points of Outcome, your effective Body is increased by one, with a minimum bonus of +1 for a successful roll. An Outcome of of 1-5 allows lifting at +1 Body, 6+ allows +2 Body, 9+ allows +3, 12+ allows +4 and so on.

Tackle

Trigger Action

When an adjacent enemy tries to move away from you, you can try to intercept. The opponent must try to Move past an Enemy or stop where they are.

You cannot use this stunt on an opponent who starts their turn adjacent to you and then immediately moves away without moving into another space that is also adjacent to you; the enemy must be trying to move past you, not simply be disengaging. This is typically to move into an area adjacent to you and then try to continue moving.

If you successfully use this against a flying creature, that creature is forced to land and cannot take off again for the rest of the round.

Wingclip

Basic Action

You use this to prevent a creature from using special movement modes, such as flight, wall walking, burrowing and the like. It does not work against swimming targets. Make a Melee check against Maneuver, on a success the special movement mode is negated for the rest of the round. On an outcome matching the target's Body the special movement is negated for the rest of the scene or until the target receives successful First Aid with a difficulty equal to your Melee skill.

A creature that would be stuck in a dangerous position due to this maneuver can still move to safety, but can perform no Basic Actions or Limit Breaks until they are safely on the ground.